Tuesday, May 25, 2010

I just got back from a whirlwind hiatus to southern New Jersey and NYC. I had a great time visiting some friends who I haven’t seen in a year or so. They were oh-so-excited to see the new me! And I was just as excited to show them my new look!

I’m no stranger to long car rides alone. Although quite boring, I used to get through my trips by promising myself different fast food stops along the way. McMuffin at 10:00….Pizza at 12:00...Whopper at 3:00. (once I even ordered a LARGE pizza on my way home and ate it…piece by piece, until I made it home. OMG...so embarrassing...) It was a glorious system, tempting myself with food to make it from state to state. But unfortunately, it is no longer an option. You can imagine, I was horribly afraid of my impending 6 hour car ride.

What did I do, you ask? Well, the money I would have spent on all that food, I spent on some new iTunes. I also invested in a little cooler and packed my own food to keep me satisfied for the trip. (1/2 a pita with tomato/turkey/cheese lasted me the whole ride…delish!) I also packed water and a few pieces of fruit, just in case, but I didn’t even need them. It was fantastic! Basically I car-danced my whole way down there. I feel so sorry for the people who were frightened by the sight of a single woman driving by herself…possibly having a seizure…while singing full blast to La Roux’s “Bulletproof.” Awesome.

My first stop was in NJ where I saw my 2-year-old godson, whom I love to the end of the earth. Last time I saw him, he was toddling around, barely walking on his own. You may rememebr him from one of my "before" pictures. Now this child constantly runs. Everywhere. Thank the lord that I am 70lbs lighter now or I could have NEVER kept up with him! Chasing him also removed all guilt about being gym-free for 6 days!

This is a picture of us looking at the giraffes at the cape may zoo. Even though this is a weird angle, I had to post it. (This was mainly because I was holding up this child with my knee...I swear my gut doesn't look like that when I stand up straight!)

I cannot even discuss how happy I was to be wearing a sundress that day...and to not have experienced what I call "fat-girl-thigh-burn." If you don't know what it is, be thankful. I will define it as a "chafing" of the thighs when they are constantly rubbing together...especially while wearing a dress or skirt. (I think this is why the skirt with shorts inside, or "skort" as it is called, was invented) It is the most painful thing ever...and kept me away from cute skirts and dresses for a VERY long time.

My friend, Ang, was (per usual) a doll! She was so nervous about what to feed me that she actually waited until I got there to go to the supermarket and stock up the fridge. (Although, she was ready and waiting with some crystal light peach iced tea when I pulled into the driveway...yummmm!) I find a lot of my friends feel this way, but I have found that generally, no matter where I go, I can always find something to eat. And sometimes I even find new favorite things. Like Rita’s (sugar free) water ice…mango peach…it was HEAVEN in a cup!!! Omygosh...we NEED one of these in Boston ASAP!

On my way back towards Boston, I also made a stop in Brooklyn to see my college friends, Cara and Andrea, and have a little catching up over some delicious brunch. It was fantastic. Walking around the city really makes me feel the difference in my body now. Another thing I noticed…I’m not a sweat covered monster when I’m outside in the summer and walking around! I love it! (as does anyone within whiffing distance, I’m sure) I really wanted to include a picture of us, but my camera battery had died by this point. Bummer. We looked just fabulous, though...I promise!

It was a long trip, but It was good to get away for the first time since my surgery and really enjoy myself. The best part? After eating out for a solid 4 days, and not going to the gym, I still came home and was down 4 lbs on the scale!!! That’s 74lbs gone, ladies and gentlemen. I couldn’t believe it! Here are some better pictures of me (and my kitty, Gabriel) after my 7.5 hours of driving!

I'm really feeling that I’m getting back to “normal” and I’m not freaking out all the time about what to eat. I am finally getting used to my new life and I’m just loving it!

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

I wasn't surprised to see my weight loss on the scale because I weigh myself at least three times a week. I really like to be aware of every single pound I lose. (Today I was down 70lbs exactly!!!) But when I talked to my doctor last week, he did surprise me with some info that I wasn't following...and I was actually really happy about it.

At my appointment last week, my doctor told me that not only is my Body Mass Index down 10 points...I have gone from stage 3 obese to stage 1. He is also quite sure that the next time we meet I will be off the obese scale all together. Holy cow!

I have also lost over 21% of my body weight...in 12 weeks. He told me this is actually the expected weight loss for someome who is 5 months post-op. This seemed kinda scary to me, so I asked him if that was ok...health-wise. Apparently, it is fantastic!

I also had an appointment with my dietician. She has actually encouraged me to eat MORE. I was shocked! She told me to make sure I have "color on my plate" so I've been trying to increase my vegetables and have started eating fruit. FRUIT! When she told me to not be afraid of fruit, I almost hugged her. My labs were also normal and I could even DECREASE some of my vitamin suplements. YOWZA!!!

Even though I usually hate surprises, I have to say...I wasn't really expecting any news this good so I'm really proud!

Over the years, as my weight has gone up and down on different diets, I aquired several different wardrobes...in several different sizes.

Five to be exact.

It has always been hard for me to part with my clothes. Even when I was dieting and losing a lot of weight, I could never let things go...you know...just in case I gained the weight back and needed that size again. I have two closets in my bedroom and they were both filled to the brim with a mish mash of different sized clothes...plus 2 boxes in my guest bedroom.

But as I have been slowly shrinking, it has become increasingly difficult to weed through all my clothes to find something to wear. I'm very lucky in the fact that for 90% of my life I wear blue scrubs provided by my hospital. (I'm down to a medium from a XXL/XXXL in those...a HUGE goal of mine, by the way!) But for the other 10% of my life, I've been running around in clothes that were just too big. Buying a lot of new stuff seemed like such a waste. I was dropping weight so fast that stuff only fit me for like a month. It was CRAZY.

Talking to my friend (who had the surgery awhile ago) about this problem, she simply said, "Keep one pair of your 'fat jeans' but get rid of the rest! You will never fit into those clothes again."

She was totally right.

So a few weeks ago, I had my mother over (for moral support) and she helped my go through the mountian of clothing I had aquired over my lifetime. I literally put every piece of clothing I owned...on my body...one piece at a time.

I was surprised at some of the things that fit...and even MORE surprised at the things that didn't! If it was too big, it went right into the "donate" box...no questions asked. By the time we were done (apx 3 hours) I had weeded out about 3/4 of the clothes in my closet.

It felt fantastic!

I have already started saving some money for new additions to my closet. When my weight evens out a little bit, I plan on going on a mad shopping spree to buy all new clothes. As excited as I am about it, the part I'm most looking forward to will be the new stores I can shop in.

Monday, May 3, 2010

1. Portion sizes. I am a single woman living in a house by myself. It is literally IMPOSIBLE for me to cook a portion small enough for just me. Impossible. I try to cook lots of different things: soup, meat, pasta sauce. No matter what, I ALWAYS have leftovers that ALWAYS get thrown away. It is wasteful and annoying. So I am forced to make and eat Lean Cuisines constantly. (A quality of food of which I am DEINITELY NOT accustomed to!!!)

2. I REALLY want to eat fresh vegetables. Like, I would give the left side of my body for a salad with fresh tomatoes and feta. I used to eat these huge troughs of salad before my surgery and, although my portion size was definitely out of whack, it was a generally healthier meal. Now the only vegetables I get are overcooked and soft. I miss salad more than ice cream. How sad is that?!?!

3. The lack of alcohol is driving me crazy. Now don’t get me wrong, I’ve had a little champagne at a wedding or two, and even a little sip of wine, but It’s just not the same. Instead of happy, I get a headache...on only a HALF of a glass of champagne! This coming from the girl who would drink enough grey goose and cranberry to drown a horse! ::sigh:: Well, at least we don’t ever have to worry about who the designated driver is going to be…

4. Eating slowly is really cramping my style. It annoys me that when I’m eating with people, I always seem to be the last one to finish. But that doesn’t bother me as much as the fact that it takes me so long to eat, that before I’m even half way through, my food is cold. (Have you ever tried to heat up a lean cuisine 3 times while eating it? Yeah, it doesn’t really add much to the flavor...) Also, being a nurse, I usually have about 10 nanoseconds to sit and eat. This means that I never eat (or drink) enough at work. Still trying to work on that one.

5. Food is sneaky. I have come to realize that finding out what foods work for me is a tricky business. Sometimes, I try certain things and they go down without any problems. (Yay!) I get super excited and stock my cabinets full of said deliciousness. Then, BAM- I go to eat it again and I get sick. I’m not exactly sure why this is, but I’m pretty sure food is just mocking me…and it is enjoying it way too much.

Wow. That felt great. Sometimes, I find myself trying to be so positive about everything that I let the stuff that annoys me build up to a point where I just want to explode. (which I think I just did quite gracefully...don’t you?) I don’t think it’s very healthy, so I’m going to try and not do that anymore.

Anywhoo- I got on the scale this morning and saw I am down 65lbs. Today, I also weigh less than I did in high school! (Just in time for the reunion this year…whoop whoop!) In honor of this fantastic milestone, and because I will be 11 weeks post-op on Wednesday, I’m putting up some pictures from a wedding I was at this weekend down on Cape Cod!

Everyone seemed to love the dress I found hiding in the back of my closet. I bought it YEARS ago when I was on one of my many diets. It was WAY too small then, but now it fits like a glove! Enjoy!